'SOCOM 4' adding 5-player cooperative mode

Tactical shooter SOCOM 4 will feature an online cooperative mode that can host up to five players, studio Zipper Interactive revealed on the official PlayStation blog.

The mode is highlighted by two match types: Takedown and Espionage. The first requires a squad to take down key enemy figures, while the second requires teams to find enemy intel and sabotage operations.

Players can customize matches to tweak difficulty and the number of enemies teams will encounter.

During a video interview on the PlayStation blog, SOCOM 4 lead designer Travis Steiner says players can string together cooperative missions to build customized campaigns.

"This is great if you have a group of friends that maybe want more of an extended battle through the evening, and you can go seamlessly from one scenario to the next," Steiner says.

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About Mike Snider

Mike Snider began covering the video game industry during the Super Nintendo-Sega Genesis clash in 1992. An original pinball wizard, he eventually was seduced by Robotron: 2084 and Tempest. These days he is a fan of action/shooters and lives out his Keith Moon fantasies playing a mean drum kit on music games. More about Mike.

About Brett Molina

Brett Molina has been writing about video games for USA TODAY since 2005. He is well-versed in Madden NFL, the fighting genre and first-person shooters. The first video game he played was Asteroids at a local arcade. He has been hooked ever since. More about Brett.